Gluten Free Monthly Favorites: Healthy Rice Crispy Treats, PF Chang's and More

Besides being Celiac Awareness Month, May was also the first month I was back in Colorado, so you could say that I was doubly excited for May to arrive. It already feels like forever since I was teaching English 101 in Mankato, Minnesota, but I'm sure the new school year will be starting before I know it.

So why not make the summer feel a bit longer than usual by focusing on all the epic eats, activities and plans I have mapped out for summer 2018? You know the deal...keep reading to find out the brand of healthy rice crispy treats that legit tastes like childhood, when I’ll be flying out to the first annual Gluten Free Teen Summit in Orlando, Florida, why I've been quiet on the blog lately (hello computer issues) and more!

What I’m Eating:

All the Whole Foods hot bar feasts. Because Mankato is such a small town, there isn’t a Whole Foods Market nearby (unless you drive almost two hours to the Twin Cities), so I arrived in Colorado Springs pretty dang hungry for some Whole Foods goodness. I may or may not have spent $17 on the hot bar last week...and eaten those Whole Foods goodies with some added veggies and avocado for four nights straight. What can I say besides that I'm addicted?

Some super creamy and dreamy gluten free and vegan hummus made in nearby Boulder! I won a variety of Blue Moose hummus on Instagram a few weeks ago, and have been diggin’ their hummus ever since. Right now, I’m making my way through their beet hummus. Slightly sweet, bright pink and very delicious! (I also might have been just as excited about the adorable shirt they sent as their hummus).

PF Chang's gluten free menu. I'd eaten at PF Chang's a few times before, but I had always gone with the GF street noodles (which are pretty dang tasty). This last time, I split the GF Ginger Chicken with Broccoli and GF Chang's Spicy Chicken with my mom and OMG. The spicy chicken transported me back to my pre-celiac Chinese food days, and I ate the leftovers for two days straight afterward. Addicted? I think so!

Healthy rice crispy treats. I don’t know how they do it, but I was transported back to elementary school lunches as soon as I bit into Made Good’s vanilla crispy square (that I received for free from Mambo Sprouts and in my monthly gluten free Love with Food subscription box —> GLUTEN-FREE MONTH-TO-MONTH PLAN *affiliate link FYI*). The crispy square smells like the sweetest sugar cookie you’ve ever baked, and the texture is perfectly light and crunchy. The coolest part? Besides being free of the top 8 allergens, Made Good’s crispy squares also contain one serving of vegetables...and no one would even be able to tell!

What I’m Doing/Loving:

Road trippin’ from Mankato, Minnesota to Colorado Springs, CO with my daddy as copilot! Since this was my first long drive, my dad flew down to keep me company and do part (correction: a lot) of the driving. I wouldn’t call it the most relaxing or enjoyable road trip ever, but I made it home safe for the summer and that’s all that matters.

My new, shorter hair! I got around eight inches of hair cut as soon as I rolled into Colorado, and I'm loving how much lighter my whole head feels. Nothing like a low-maintenance makeover to kick off the summer.

Soaking up as much Colorado summer as I can. I was extremely scared to stumble across Mankato, Minnesota’s weather radar and see that it was getting up to 98 this last week. No thank you! I’ll enjoy Colorado’s 70s as long as I can. The gorgeous scenery for walking and hiking doesn’t hurt either. If there’s something I have to do this summer while I’m in Colorado Springs, be sure to tell me in the comments. I appreciate any and all ideas!

Reading as many good mystery books and psychological thrillers as I can get my hands on. As soon as school lets out every summer, the library is always my first stop. So far, my two favorite books of this summer are Close to Home by Clara Hunter and Let the Dead Speak by Jane Casey. On the nonfiction side, I also fell in love with An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination: A Memoir by Elizabeth McCracken. If you've ever lost someone you loved or haven't known what to say to someone who's grieving, this book will definitely resonate with you.

What I’m Planning: 

Lots of lesson planning! As some of my family and friends know, I’ll be teaching a slightly different version of English 101 next year as part of my teaching assistantship at Minnesota State University, Mankato. That means I have a lot of lessons to create...so please send some creative and motivated vibes your way! For the teachers out there, any lesson planning tips? I’d LOVE to hear them!

Celebrating the return of my computer. The graphics of my computer suddenly went psycho last Wednesday night, and after I took it to the Apple store, they determined that it needed a trip to the computer hospital for a tune up. In the end, they had to replace the display and the logic board...and by the surprised look on the guy's face who brought back my computer, replacing half a computer doesn't happen every day. What can I say? When it I do it, I do it well. (And thank goodness for warranties).

Sharing some epic gluten free eats (sneak peak above!) and probiotics very soon. While tons of people are prepping their “summer bodies,” I’m working on a round up of gluten free sweets...I guess that’s just how I (cinnamon) roll. The products featured in the round up will be healthier than your traditional gluten free desserts, though, so they are winning treats for everyone! Plus, watch my Instagram for a review of a new probiotic I’m trying out.

Preparing for the first annual Gluten Free Teen Summit in Orlando, Florida! I talk about the summit in more detail here, so I’ll just say that my presentation is in the works and I’m equally excited, terrified and still in shock that I’m actually attending as a speaker. A full recap of the summit will be happening in early July (since the summit itself is in late June), so keep your eyes peeled.

Monthly Favorites: The Bottom Line

It blows my mind that Celiac Awareness Month and May are already over, but I'm feeling super grateful that I still have a lot of summer - and a lot of delicious gluten free food, family time and adventures - still to come. Because of my computer issues, I've been much quieter on the blog and social media than I planned...but the shall-we-say "forced vacation time" from constant access to technology has only made even more excited to share some more gluten free tips, tricks, recipes and adventures this June!

Like this post? Tweet me some love by clicking here: "Craving #healthy rice crispy treats or #celiac safe PF Chang's? Want to hear more about the #GlutenFree Teen Summit in Orlando, Florida? Check out this month's gluten free monthly favorites for all that and more --> http://bit.ly/2Hqkn3f"

What were your favorite eats and activities from May? What do you have planned for June? Tell me in the comments!